Rise of the Dawn Pirates
by Lochstar1
Summary: Monkey D. Luffy has found the One Piece, and inspired another entire generation with the promise of boundless treasure. A new pirate captain has arisen, bent on taking the sea by storm and becoming legend. OC based story, accepting OCs.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece.**

 **A/N: Hello and welcome to a brand new Fanfiction from your host, me! This is something new for me, but I wanted to branch out! It's an OC based story which means that I, the author, will be working with you, the readers, in order to craft an entire world. You'll be capable of submitting your own OCs to fill any role you've seen in the manage from crew member to Admiral, and even some that didn't! Details are below, but until then, enjoy the chapter.**

...

It was raining heavily in Loguetown, an absolute downpour on the momentum day that was about to occur. A large group of people all clad in cloaks stood, their eyes all fixated to a single point as they waited for what was about to occur. They all knew it was going to happen but still they couldn't tear their eyes away just in case the impossible happened as it so often did concerning the individual they were dealing with.

A figure walked along, clad in a dark red captain's jacket, his trademark straw hat conspicuously missing. His head was tilted down, his eyes closed and a wide grin spread across his face. The grin of a man who knew his own death was coming and had truly accepted it. He was flanked by guards holding long spears, all intending to end the life of the man who'd done the impossible and found it, the legendary treasure.

Monkey D. Luffy, the second pirate king.

He was gradually led up the steps to the execution point of the last pirate king, walking the very same steps that his predecessor had, looking over the very view that he had all those years before. Yet no lightning bolt would save him this time. He eventually assumed his position, his execution all but certain when suddenly a lone teen burst through the audience.

It was clearly a male who possessed messy brown hair and startling green eyes. He was pale and scrawny yet his eyes burned with the determination of a greater man, someone who was destined to do incredible things. And at that moment he was willing to face the most dangerous man alive without showing any fear.

"Pirate king! Where'd you hide your treasures? You had to hide them somewhere right?" He demanded over the downpour.

"My treasures you say?" The man in the straw hat asked.

He then proceeded to open his eyes for the first time since his arrival and looked out over the audience who'd gathered around him as well as beyond, across the seas that he'd sailed, memories flooded through his mind as he continued to grin.

"I left it all that place, search for it!" Luffy began.

"Stop him before he!" A marine captain wearing the typical white jacket with the symbol for justice cried out.

"If you want them they're yours for the taking, I left it all in One Piece!" The pirate king cried out.

His last words would ring out across the town, and then throughout the world through the mouths of others, inspiring an entire generation. Even though the two blades had been thrust into the heart of the rubberman he didn't die that day. No, his name would live on through the dreams of an entire generation.

People began to cheer, hugging each other out of sheer joy, Luffy had discovered the greatest treasure in the world, and now he was willing to give it to anyone! The money, the jewels, everything that anyone could ever want in life! The joy was palpable in the air, despite the fact that someone had just died nobody could be happier. Yet there was one soul exempt from all the joy, it was the boy at the front who was at that point looking up at the lifeless body who was still grinning, even in death.

While the two executioners were lamenting the fact that they'd been fooled again by the exact same trick as before and the marine captain punched through the wall of a bar down at the sidelines the boy looked up at the man, his expression one of determination. "That place..." The child murmured.

57 years later

A young boy scrubbed the floor of a lavish building, the floors were made totally out of marble and no expense was spared on the interior design of the building. Expensive paintings hung on the walls and expensive looking busts and sculptures were abound throughout the floor.

There were more doors than anyone could count with ease and at the back of the rook was a large staircase leading up to another floor with even more rooms presumably full of expensive decor. Yet the boy was a stark contrast to the design. He was dressed in what could only be described as rags and was covered in dirt. His bones were visible under his flesh and he looked to be utterly malnourished. Yet still he scrubbed.

Suddenly he ceased and looked out through one of the windows to see something else that starkly contrasted with the lavish design of the building. The buildings were all run down and falling apart, makeshift supports all that kept them from falling down. He stared for quite a while, captivated by the state of the buildings before tears began to pour from his eyes, landing on the floor he'd painstakingly scrubbed.

"Oi, tears ain't a suitable water to be washing the floor with!" An aggressive voice suddenly called out which caused the boy's head to shoot up.

Standing at the bottom of the stairs was a huge man, presumably about 6'3 who was quite powerfully built with a rotund figure and a large belly who had a a permanent sneer on his face. He had dark green hair and eyes of the same color as well as an X shaped scar on his chin. He wore a white business shirt with a loose green jacket, a pair of navy pants and black boots. But all of these features were overshadowed by a huge hammer he wore on his back that was gold in coloration and seemed to be about eight foot long.

"I-I'm sorry sir, I'll clean it right away!" The boy cried as he began to scrub furiously.

He was so enthralled in his work that he didn't notice the man approaching him, and then picking him up by the neck and holding him in the air with the utmost of ease. The aforementioned man just held the smaller male up in the air and stared at him before suddenly dropping him down the ground. And laughing.

"Just be grateful I'm in a good mood kid!" The man jovially laughed.

He then proceeded to look down at the shivering mess on the ground who'd once more grabbed his rag and begun to scrubbing once more, this time much more slowly and with shaking hands.

"And do you know why?" The man asked.

The boy didn't respond and just continued to scrub and shake, not looking at the man who had nearly killed him. If he did so it could mean his swift and painful death.

"I asked you a question!" The man roared as he kicked the scrawny individual in the stomach and sent him flying.

The boy landed a few feet away, clutching his stomach and coughing. It was a devastating blow at the best of times, but while he was as malnourished as he was it was one that bought him close to death.

"Now, do you know why?" The man in the green jacket asked.

"N-no. Why?" The boy asked before coughing wildly and then coughing up blood.

"Because the World Government just increased my bounty to eight million Beli!" The man laughed.

"And do you know why that is?" The man continued.

"N-no, why?" The boy wisely replied, having learnt from his previous mistake.

"Because I, Kenway, "Hammerman" Edward, have shown this pathetic town exactly who the strongest pirate in the North Blue is! Namely, me! And as soon as I get enough gold from this shithole and any other islands I eventually decide to take over I'll build a giant palace, even bigger than this one, right here on this island. And then I'll take the Grand Line by storm and find One Piece!" He maniacally cackled as his arms extended out to the side of him and he threw his head back.

Eventually his laughter subsided and he looked over at the boy who had somehow managed to get back up and was working on scrubbing away the blood that he himself had bought into the world.

"Alright kid, when you've finished scrubbing at that mess you made you're free to go. But if I find even one drop of blood on that floor I'll kill you and your whole family, got that?" The pirate asked cruelly before turning around and walking back up the stairs.

The boy to inured to work and scrubbed furiously. Trying to remove every drop of blood on the floor, yet as he did he cried and that left even more of a mess for him to clean up. Yet after what felt like hours the boy finally cleaned up the entire mess and his tears came to a close. He eventually stood up and began to walk away.

Meanwhile

A small raft floated across the ocean. It had but one passenger and he was busily paddling away, desperately tying to reach land. The man on board was tallish and looked to be about eighteen. He had messy brown hair that didn't look easy to tame and startling green eyes that looked out over the ocean behind him as he rowed. He was of an average build and possessed relatively pale skin that was covered with healed wounds.

He wore a black t-shirt that was buttoned yet completely wide open revealing a grievous wound that had long since healed over just above his ribs. He also wore a pair of dark red pants that were quite loose on him and a pair of black shoes. He was quite well toned, possessing pronounced chest muscles and a six pack yet he wasn't muscular, with his arms and legs being quite scrawny.

He rowed aimlessly, looking around and trying to work out where on earth he was going and how on earth he was going to get there when suddenly he paused and placed a hand to his chin with a confused look on his face.

"I thought that being a pirate was supposed to be about adventure and following your dreams, and that's all that dad ever seemed to do on his ship. So why is this so boring?!" The teen asked exasperatedly before lying back and sighing.

But then he suddenly felt a bizarre feeling beneath his ship and sat up before turning around and crying out fearfully. His ship had been lifted up by a giant Sea King that began to swim towards the shore for no apparent reason.

"Yahoo! This is what being a pirate is about!" The boy cried before he suddenly blanched.

"Wait a minute, how do I get this thing to stop?" He pondered before realizing that he was approaching land quite rapidly.

He freud to tip his ship off the head of the great beast bit he was too slow and suddenly the aquatic behemoth and vanished, leaving the man to be sent flying towards the shore at top speeds.

"Well crap." He muttered before suddenly the raft made impact.

Meanwhile

The boy who'd been scrubbing the floor of the lavish building walked around with his head hung down. He kicked a stone along, his face devoid of expression as he mulled over the events that had occurred recently when suddenly something bizarre happened.

Meanwhile

A building that had once existed was now nothing more than rubble on the ground and whatever had collided with it was buried beneath it. But then a few pieces of rubble were knocked off the stack and the boy with the startling green eyes stood up, surveying his surroundings before his eyes suddenly settled on the small boy who stood beneath him.

Meanwhile the boy was in an absolute state, he'd initially thought that rival pirates might be attacking and were bombing the buildings, but then he wondered whether it was Edward himself, having seen a speck of blood he'd somehow missed, on a rampage to kill him and then everyone he cared about.

Yet it was none of their things and a man who didn't look like he was built to survive colliding with a building at high speeds emerged for the rubble, looking around curiously and then staring at him.

"Oh, hi! What island is this?" He asked curiously.

The boy didn't respond, he merely looked up at the strange man standing atop the rubble of one of the ruined buildings and gaped at him, his mouth opening and closing as he stared at the boy who'd survived crashing into a building that despite being a little on the ruined side was still quite stable and definitely not something someone should be able to collide head first with.

"Hmm? Guess you're not too talkative?" The man asked before suddenly leaping off the top of his makeshift pedestal and landing on the ground next to the boy who shook with fear as he stared up at the man who he presumed would strike him for his insolence.

"Oh, how rude of me! I forgot to introduce myself!" The teen suddenly cried out causing fear initially and then confusion.

"I'm Ashton D. Seth, who are you?" He asked in a friendly manner.

"I-I'm Freddie..." The boy muttered.

"Well, good to meet you Freddie! Would you happen to know where there's a ship around here?" Seth asked.

The boy looked to the ground, a look of sadness on his face as he sighed deeply. Whoever this stranger was it was probably wiser for him to have stayed away from the island, after all he'd just presumably lost whatever form of transport he'd used considering he was asking for a ship and there wasn't any available for someone who wasn't associated with Hammerman.

"Unfortunately no..." Freddie apologetically replied.

"Oh well, that's fine. I'll just find me a shipwright and get them to build me a ship!" The older boy announced.

Freddie merely looked at him like he was insane, shipwrights weren't exactly the most common thing to find and good ones were even harder. Not only that but an entire ship would likely cost a small fortune, something that the man didn't seem to be carrying with him. Not only that but all of the shipwrights of the island were either dead or working for Edward in order to improve his ship or build him another.

"You'll probably have a little trouble finding yourself one of those too." The boy dressed in rags lamented.

"Heh, well then I'll just grab a piece of wood and a few sticks and row!" Seth exclaimed brightly.

Freddie once more looked at him in utter confusion. He'd just seemed optimistic previously, but now he was borderline insane! Or well, just insane! The ocean was a dangerous place and only people with death wishes went out on pieces of wood with sticks as oars! Actually, nobody did that!

The boy was just about to explain that that was utterly impossible when Seth began to look around curiously, observing all of the buildings that were around him, he then raised a hand to his chin and squinted.

"This place seems to be really run down, what happened here?" He asked abruptly.

This caused the younger boy to tense and look towards the ground. As he did so tears began to drip from his eye which caused Seth to raise his hands and step back apologetically.

"Uh, sorry, I didn't realize it was such a sensitive issue." He apologized profusely.

"No, it's okay." The boy replied as he wiped the tears from his eyes and looked up at the teen in the open black shirt.

"But this isn't the best place to discuss it, you should come back to my house." Freddie explained.

"I'd be honored to." Seth replied with a broad grin.

Soon the two of them were sitting in a small hut. The walls were paper thin and the roof was supported by numerous makeshift support struts made of everything from wood to scrap metal that was tied together with rope. The glass in the windows was cracked and the fire place was seemingly nothing more than ash and stained bricks.

"Alright, I suppose I'd better explain." Freddie sighed as he looked down at the ground.

Seth looked at him from the chair he was relaxing in and nodded, words weren't needed inI this situation.

"Years ago this town was a prosperous trading port, people came from all around in order to do business, recruit crews and buy from our local shops. But about three years ago a man named Kenway Edward appeared. He's a pirate and he declared this island to be under his control." The boy lamented.

"Didn't the marines stop this man?" Seth asked curiously.

"Unfortunately the marines in this area were always understaffed, there was no reason for the World Government to spend money on soldiers who wouldn't do anything and as such "Hammerman" as he calls himself rose to power rapidly. He charged exorbitant rates as taxation and nearly bankrupted most businesses immediately. Not only that but he siphoned off all the money that the port made and makes and used it to build a giant palace while the rest of us starved." Freddie continued, tears forming in his eyes.

"Huh, I thought I saw a giant building as I was hurtling through the sky." Seth mused.

Wiping his eyes the boy couldn't help but smile at Seth's antics, he seemed to be a bit of a moron but he certainly knew how to make someone feel better. Perhaps that was a byproduct of his intelligence level or lack thereof.

"Anyway, Kenway charged massive taxes on people who wanted to trade here and pretty soon all the legitimate business people left. He was very quick to replace them with slave traders, pirates and even associated himself with a man who ran a fight arena illegally! We all became helpless and none of us are able to stand up to him. Those who do are crushed rapidly." Freddie finished, his expression having become downtrodden once more.

"So you're saying that this guy took over a town of people who weren't able to defend themselves and then exploited them?" Seth asked, his brow furrowing.

"Yeah...wait a minute, you can't stand up to him! You'll be crushed! He's a pirate with an eight million Beli bounty!" Freddie cried.

At this Seth grinned and stood up. He then proceeded to crack his neck, the same defiant grin plastered on his face as he did so. Once he was done with cracking his neck he rolled his shoulders and winked at Freddie, surprising him.

"Don't worry about it, this'll be easy!" The explained before he began to walk out.

"No, you can't!" Freddie cried as suddenly the door, which was hanging off one hinge was tentatively pushed open revealing an adult figure and a young girl.

The man was of an average height, standing about 5'10, he had a blonde beard that was quite dirty and covered the sides of his face. He was bald on the top of his head despite the fact his face was covered in facial hair and he also had large bushy eyebrows. He had a friendly look in his brown eyes. He was incredibly skinny, even more so than Freddie and he was dressed in similar rags to the boy.

The girl that came in was tiny, only about 3'3 and incredibly skinny. She had long blonde hair that was filthy and had brown eyes that bulged from her head and were too large for her face. She was also dressed in rags like the other two people from the island.

"D-dad!" Freddie cried.

"Oh my Freddie, you didn't tell me you had guests coming over. I'd like to apologize for our lack of courtesy." The man apologized to Seth.

"Oh no, I just sort of...dropped in." The teen replied sheepishly.

"Well we should still do our best to welcome you." The bearded man explained.

Seth and Freddie were then quickly ushered to a small table that the blonde man set up rapidly before beginning to prepare the food. When he finished preparing the food which didn't take very long he presented it on the table. The rations were meager, about a quarter of a loaf of bread, a few pieces of meat and numerous vegetables in small amounts with berries strewn around.

"Sorry that we couldn't provide more." The bearded man apologized, seemingly embarrassed by the lack of food.

"No need to worry, in fact you shouldn't share with me!" Seth explained.

"Nonsense, fortune smiles kindly upon those who are charitable and it would be rude to exclude a guest from a meal." He continued.

Freddie had been noticeably silent throughout the entire affair, wordlessly taking a small piece of bread and a slice of meat along with a few vegetables and berries. The young girl took another small piece of bread and a piece of meat with no vegetables, following suite Seth took his meager provisions and began to nibble on the bread while the father ate nothing.

"Is something wrong? You should probably eat." Seth stated as he noticed the father's lack of eating.

"Oh no, I go without food every second day. It keeps me in fine physical form!" The father merrily stated.

This caused Seth to narrow his eyes, it was clear that the man was going without food so that his children and guest could have more to eat. That explained why he appeared to be so malnourished.

"So what's your name son?" The bearded man asked, deciding to change the topic, noticing that Seth's eyes had narrowed and his son had tensed.

"Ashton D. Seth, yourself?" The teen replied.

"Ah, I'm Robert, Oliver A. Robert to be precise." The man replied.

"So, what brings you here?" The man asked, continuing the conversation.

"Well, I never intended to turn up here, I was just sailing along in my raft when a Sea King appeared beneath me and sent my raft flying. Shortly after that I decided to drop in." Seth explained with a sheepish grin on his face.

"My my, you're lucky to be alive. But is there anything that you want to do while on this island?" The old man asked as he nibbled at his piece of bread.

"I'm going to beat this hammer guy and free the island!" Seth cried which caused the old man's eyes to open slightly.

Freddie looked over at the admittedly insane individual who'd appeared from nowhere and took it upon himself to free the island from the tyranny of Kenway, a pirate far beyond the strength of anyone on the island. However it was neither of those who spoke up.

"Please don't." The small girl murmured which caused Seth to look over at her in a confused manner.

"Why does nobody here want me to stop him? He's done nothing but cause pain and misery for all of you! Are you all masochistic or something?" The boy in the open shirt asked in a confused manner.

"No...you're just nice. I don't want you to disappear too." The small girl explained before looking down and running from the dinner table, tears pouring down her face.

"What was that about?" Seth asked as he blinked a few times.

The father of the two children sighed before he closed his eyes and lowered his head. He then opened them and began to speak.

"Shortly after the birth of my daughter Kenway began forcing his reign on the island and my wife Diana, the most beautiful person I've ever known, decided that we needed to stand up to him, but she lacked the strength to defeat a pirate. As such she set sail and promised to return when she was strong enough to free the town. She never returned...we still hold out hope but it was three years ago and we haven't seen a trace of her." He finished before sighing and closing his eyes once more.

"Wow, so she just associates standing up to this Edward guy with disappearing forever, not really the best way to inspire somebody to stand up and fight." Seth replied, feeling somewhat somber.

"Yeah, maybe that's why everybody already thinks they're dead." The bald man mused.

"Oh well, I'm sure that Diana will come back, she's probably worried sick right now!" The teen replied, utterly shocking Freddie.

Meanwhile the old man had opened his eyes and was watching the young boy in front of him with his unwavering commitment and grinned, this boy reminded him of Diana and it was refreshing to have somebody full of vigor and fighting spirit after years of wandering amongst ghosts of human beings who were too afraid to even walk out of line. People had relinquished all hope and as such there was very little to actually live for anymore. If somebody died it didn't really matter, they'd been dead inside for years anyway.

"Nyahahahaha!" The bald man laughed utterly shocking poor Freddie once more.

He hadn't heard his father laugh in years, in fact he hadn't heard anyone laugh in years and feeling one so full of joy and life was utterly shocking. He'd heard people laughing in hysteria and even a few chuckling as they lay on the street badly wounded, having long since accepted their fates and come to terms with it.

But someone laughing out of joy...that was something foreign to him, something long forgotten.

"I like you kid!" The bald man jovially guffawed.

"Exactly, so don't let him go out!" Freddie pleaded, believing his father to have gone insane.

"No, you need to go out and fight him, you can beat him I know it!" The bald man cried out before grinning wildly.

"Don't worry I won't let you down." Seth replied before he walked towards the door.

"Are you crazy?" Freddie demanded causing his father to look at him, the grin still present on his face.

"No, in fact somebody standing up to Kenway is just what this town needs." The man explained as he looked at the door that Seth had just exited from.

It's been a long time since I've seen a D. The old man reflected with a wry grin.

"Ugh, I've got to go stop him!" Freddie cried as he ran out after his new friend.

15 Minutes Later

Seth wandered through the town, looking around complacently, wondering where on earth he was supposed to look for a tyrannical pirate. From the sound of things he likely had an the the size of the Grand Line and would be off at a monument to his vanity. Meanwhile, Freddie ran after him, unable to follow the teen's erratic movement patterns. "Damnit, he's going to get himself killed!" He murmured to himself as he continued the search.

People gave Seth strange looks, evidently not used to seeing somebody wander around with no particular goal in mind. Due to Kenway's exorbitant taxes and cruelty constantly working was a necessity, if you wanted to survive that was. Even working constantly and trying to make ends meet while earning money left you nearly homeless, so productivity and diligence were considered paramount.

His travels took him towards the only grand building remaining in this shrine to entropy, Kenway's palace. Pausing for a moment to appreciate its grandeur, the teen took a moment to appreciate the grandeur of the building, its elaborate architecture an almost sickening contrast to the poverty surrounding him. Strolling towards the entrance, he awkwardly vaulted the fence, scrambling up it and dropping onto the other side before making his way towards the two gargantuan doors and pushing them open.

Meanwhile

Shortly behind Seth, Freddie hobbled to the palace. His breathing was ragged, the result of many years of malnutrition, and he'd barely been able to make it that far, Seth setting an impressive pace for someone who was walking. As he arrived, he saw his newfound friend pushing open the doors.

"Wait!" The boy panted out, incapable of mustering the strength to raise his voice.

But it was of no use, and the doors slammed shut behind the teen with a resounding thump.

"I have to go after him." Freddie resolved, moving towards the gate.

However, as he grew closer his body began to shake and his legs grew weak. Images of Kenway's violence flashed into the mind of the boy, the aches of the man's abuse becoming overpowering as he began to sweat profusely, shuddering with pure fear as he shakily made his way toward the gate. Arm outstretching and shaking violently, he gripped the wrought iron in front of him. Only to fall to his knees.

"I don't want you to disappear too."

His sister's words reverberated through his mind as tears began to drip down his face.

"Damnit, I've got to...save him." Freddie murmured.

Meanwhile

Seth made his way through the majestic palace, struck by its gaudy interior and luxurious choices in furnishing. It seemed mostly deserted, despite being spotless, meaning that there were definitely very few inhabitants. Fewer people to get in his way.

Making his way up the lavish stairs, Seth wandered through numerous rooms, pushing open doors and noticing that virtually nothing had been used.

"Place has gotta be worth a fortune." He mumbled to himself.

Eventually, he heard the sound of deep, hoarse laughter and followed it to the source. Pushing open the door, he saw Edward Kenway sitting on a large couch, ruffians, who were most likely his crew, dotted around the room and a thick air of cigarette smoke hanging around the entire room.

"What the Hell?" Kenway demanded loudly as he slammed his beer down onto the table in front of him.

At this, the entire room fell silent, Seth boldly walking into the room to face Kenway.

"What business do you have here, boy?" He snarled.

"I'm assuming that you're the Kenway who's been extorting the good people of this town?"

"So what if I am?"

"Well, I'm going to take you down."

At this, the room fell silent.

"Fwahahahahahahahaha." Kenway bellowed.

The remainder of his crew started to chuckle nervously, obliging their captain lest they are the living daylights beaten out of them.

"You honestly think you can take me down? Me, Edward "Hammerman" Kenway, worth eight million Beli and in total control of this island?"

"You don't sound that impressive."

At this, veins began to pulse in Kenway's forehead, his eyes narrowed, and his jaw clenched. The entire crew tensed. Nobody spoke back to Kenway and lived to tell the tale. His fury was legendary and anyone who stopped his pontification would pay the severe price.

"Listen you little shit, I'm going to conquer this entire ocean, and when I'm done with it, I'll move into the Grand Line, and conquer that too. And when I'm done with that, I'll take the New World by storm and become one of the Yonko!"

At this, Seth's fist clenched.

"Is that right?"

"Sure is."

What followed was too fast for any of the crew to follow, but Seth's fist most certainly collided with the chin of Kenway, who was lifted from his chair by an absolutely brutal blow. Colliding with the marble wall behind him, Kenway was sent hurtling out from the building, breaking the wall behind him, and sending chunks of marble with him.

Meanwhile

Freddie looked up in shock as Kenway was sent flying out of the building, eyes opening wide as he saw the man who, up until this morning, had been invincible shattered. Eyes drifting further up, he saw Seth standing there, fist outstretched, smoke billowing out from the room.

"No way...he really did it." Freddie marveled.

However, he heard a groan and noticed that Kenway was moving to his feet.

"Of course he couldn't do it, nobody could..." The boy mumbled as his eyes once again fell to the ground.

Meanwhile

Seth walked forward calmly, the crew's jaws dropped as they watched him calmly leap down from the window, landing in the grass on one knee.

Kenway had managed to get to his feet, blood dribbling down his chin. Spitting out a few teeth, he looked at the teen who was slowly moving towards him.

"Heh, not bad, kid. How'd you like to join my crew?" He inquired.

"Sorry, but I've got plans to start my own."

"Shame...I'll have to kill you then. Get me my hammer!" He roared to the crew in the palace.

Quickly scrambling around, several of the crew members managed to slowly drag his giant ornate sledgehammer, before barely hurtling it towards the garden.

It landed slightly in front of Kenway, causing the ground the indent. Grinning maliciously, the large man grabbed the handle and hoisted it into the air above him.

"Fwahaha. Only I'm strong enough to lift this here hammer, prepare to be crushed!" He roared as he swung it down with all of might, muscles pulsing and veins throbbing in his head at the sheer exertion of it.

A resounding thump was heard as it collided with Seth's outstretched palm.

"You're right, this is pretty heavy." He casually stated.

The entirety of Kenway's crew stared in pure shock, eyes wide open and mouths hanging open. Nobody had ever managed to withstand their captain's hammer, let alone stop it with one hand.

The large man shuddered with exertion as he tried to push the hammer down, face turning red and sweat pouring down it. Yet it failed to move, Seth's arm resolute. Suddenly, Seth's skin began to take on a grayish tone as his eyes changed from their typical green to a harsh yellow, the pupils shifting to those of an avian.

"There's one problem with your goal." Seth calmly stated as his body continued to change, causing Kenway's eyes to widen.

His nose and jaw were elongating to resemble a large beak, short claws began to grow from his fingernails, and a pair of wings spouted from his back. At this, Kenway's eyes widened substantially.

"Scum like you aren't worthy of being a Yonko!" The teen roared before bending his arm slightly and pushing, causing the hammer to hurtle backwards, throwing its wielder off balance.

With this, Seth bent his legs and cocked his fist back slightly, the taller man's eyes widening in fear as he desperately tried to regain his balance.

"Ancient Ascension!" Seth roared before delivering a devastating uppercut to Hammerman's chin, sending him flying into the air, all of his crew staring in utter shock.

"No way!" One of the crew roared.

"He...beat him." Freddie murmured.

Kenway was sent hurtling through the air, hammer released as a stream of blood followed the huge man. All across the town, people stared as their oppressor went hurtling helplessly over their heads. One thing was for certain, Kenway had finally been toppled.

Cheers and applause broke out across the entire town, while the crew looked over, utterly chagrined.

Meanwhile

Robert looked up and saw Kenway flying through the air. At his side his daughter looked up at him confusedly.

"Why are the people cheering, Daddy?"

"That boy reminded everyone what hope was." He replied with tears appearing in his eyes. "Diana...somebody's done it."

Meanwhile

"That was...incredible!" Freddie cried, leaping up, his previous stupor forgotten.

Seth grinned as he walked towards him, transformation fading. "Told you I could do it."

"But how di-"

"I ate the Dino Dino Fruit: Model Pterodactyl. It lets me turn either into a pterodactyl or hybrid." He explained with a large grin.

"Who are you?" Freddie asked in awe.

Seth looked at him innocently. "Me? I'm a pirate."

Not able to get another word in, Freddie followed Seth towards where Kenway had landed, some of the townspeople having fashioned makeshift restraints for him.

"There he is, the one who beat him!" The familiar voice of Robert yelled.

People suddenly swarmed Seth who looked somewhat uncomfortable at all of the attention. People danced in the streets, makeshift parades taking place as the shifty merchants and remaining crew slipped away from the island.

"We should build a statue!" Someone cried.

"No need, just give me a headstart on the Marines."

"Wait, we were saved by a pirate?" One crowd member yelled.

"Of course we were! Who else would have the sense of justice to help a town that would offer no benefit?" Robert announced.

At this, the cheering redoubled, and Seth was barely able to make his way through, shaking hands and giving high fives to what seemed to be everyone on the island.

Eventually, he made his way to the centre of the town where Freddie was kneeling next to Kenway's giant golden hammer. A crater had formed as a result of the collision, and a handful of buildings had fallen down around it.

"What're you worried about? Kenway's beaten." Seth inquired.

"It's not Kenway...it's just that I was so cowardly, too afraid to stand up for myself or to even try and stop you from hurting yourself." Freddie admitted, tears starting to pour down his face when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"It isn't always about being the bravest or strongest, it's about being able to recognize your weaknesses, and when you have, move on and overcome them." Seth explained, a vibrant grin appearing on his face.

At this, Freddie's tears started to dry up, and he nodded at Seth.

"How'd you like to come with me? I could use a First Mate." The teen continued.

At this Freddie's eyes widened, starting to glisten with hope. However, he looked towards the hammer that stood in front of him, almost taunting him with its presence.

"I would love to but...I'm not strong enough yet." He explained, walking towards the hammer that stood in front of him and placing his hand on it.

"One day, I swear that I'll be strong enough to lift this hammer!" He roared, bringing a smile to the face of Oliver who was approaching the two.

"And when you do I'll be waiting in the New World where you can join the crew of one of the Yonko!" Seth replied.

"Right!" Freddie exclaimed, nodding enthusiastically.

At this, Seth outstretched his fist, a gesture for Freddie to return, which he did.

Walking over towards the fist bump, Robert grinned, his daughter still gripping onto his hand.

"I can't thank you enough for what you did."

"It was no problem, just all live well." Seth replied sheepishly.

"Well, the island would like to repay you in some way. From what I've gathered you're short of a ship." He explained, causing the teen to crack a grin.

"Well, yeah..."

"There's an entire collection for you to choose from."

When they reached the dock, they noted that many of the ships had already been removed from the docks, the crooked owners having fled with everything they could carry.

"Hmm, looks like only Kenway's personal ship is left." Freddie mused.

Calling it 'personal' was almost satirical, the ship was absolutely massive, with ornate woodwork, and several sails positioned on it. Gargantuan, it filled a fair portion of the harbor on its own, and was most certainly did not suit Seth's rather...modest crew.

"Uh, does it have a raft onboard?"

After some exploration which revealed massive treasures contained on the ship itself, they eventually located a small, two-man raft that was far more manageable.

"Hey Freddie, make sure that you bring this ship to me when I become a Yonko, alright?" Seth requested.

"Yes, captain!" Freddie replied, saluting with earnest vigor.

"Good man."

When the raft was lowered down to the water, Seth started to row away, stopping briefly in order to wave to the family of three that faced him, dressed in rags but with newfound fire in his eyes.

"If I find Diana, I'll tell her that her amazing family is missing her!" Seth yelled.

"I'll bring her with me when we meet in the New World!" Freddie replied.

And so, Seth made his way off the small island and began the first steps in his grand adventure.

"Wait a minute...Seth can turn into a pterodactyl." Freddie mused as the teen faded away.

"So?" Robert replied.

"Why doesn't he just fly?"

"Where's the fun in that?"

...

 **A/N: And there we go, the first chapter is concluded. This is something I've been working on for a long time, so I'm happy to see it finally finished. Now, the chapter was quite long, but I did have to set the atmosphere, so do tell me whether you prefer fewer, but longer chapters, or shorter but more plentiful ones. Anyway, onto the reason you're all here. All of the vacant positions will be posted below, with the template under that. I'll do my best to use all of your characters, but I do reserve the right to change them if I wish (although I'll try to keep them in tact), and also to fill any empty role myself, although that somewhat defeats the point of one of these collaborative exercises. Make sure to PM your characters to me, since leaving them in reviews gets messy.**

Crew

First Mate: Taken

Swordsman: Taken

Navigator: Taken

Marksman: Open

Chef: Open

Archeologist: Taken

Musician: Taken

Shipwright: Taken

Cabin Boy: Taken

(Custom Position are Welcome and Encouraged)

Other Positions

Fleet Admiral: Open

Admirals: Three Spots Open

Vice-Admirals: Open

Rear Admirals and Below: Open

Shichibukai: 6 Spots Open

Yonko: Four Spots Open

Supernovas: Open

Full Name:

Epithet/Alias: (Or nicknames)

Age:

Gender:

Position: (What role does your character fill in the crew, eg. Navigator, Swordsman, etc)

Personality: (Likes, dislikes, temperament, please be as descriptive as possible)

Dreams: (What does your character hope to accomplish, and what is their ultimate goal?)

Appearance: (This should include their physical attributes, clothing, and any unique features)

Race:

Affiliation: (Dawn Pirates, Rival, Shichibukai, Marine, etc)

Devil Fruit: (If applicable)

Weapons: (If applicable)

Combat: (How does your character fight? Just provide a short description so I know what I'm working with. Can include their Devil Fruit)

Attacks: (Entirely optional)

History: (Please be as descriptive as possible)

Other: (Anything else you can think to add)

-If your character is a Pirate please add the following-

Bounty: (If not a Shichibukai, and please keep it reasonable. If they're a Yonko, etc, just don't include it until we get a better idea of what their bounties are)

Form of Piracy: (Whether they're brutal, heroic, greedy, etc)

-If your character is a Marine please add the following-

Rank:

Opinion of pirates:

Justice: (Every Marine has their own, which is based off their personality, Akainu has Absolute Justice, etc)

 **If you're feeling particulalry creative, you can even submit an island, or even an arc. However, I've got a fairly good idea where the story is going, so I might not use it. However, if you're creative, or it's better than what I've got planned (not hard) I'll definitely use it. But I am the author, so I can't just divert it all to you guys!**

 **Anyway, until next time, Lochstar out!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece**

 **A/N: What's this? A new chapter the next day? Something must be horribly wrong in the universe. But, in all seriousness, it's due to all of the positive feedback and awesome OCs you guys have been sending my way. Some of the crew spots have already been filled, and I'm loving what I'm seeing so far, keep them coming, guys and girls!**

 **...**

Seth paddled like a madman to try and reach the nearby island. Once again he'd set off with absolutely no idea where he was headed, and as a result found nothing but ocean. However, by some utter miracle, he'd located an island. It promised everything that he wanted, land...well, Seth wasn't exactly fussy.

Eventually reaching the shore, Seth hopped out and dragged his boat up onto the shore, not noticing a dock anywhere nearby. For a normal individual, this would be quite strenuous, but Seth didn't seem to have an trouble with it, and pulled the boat up with one arm, dragging it well beyond the distance that was necessary. After all, he couldn't risk the tide coming in!

Stopping to take stock of his surroundings, Seth noticed that the island was covered in jungles, something not unusual for the tropical South Blue. Deciding that although he could go go over it with flight, or dig under it if he was feeling really adventurous, it'd best to head through the area, nd thus decided to set off.

Several minutes of harsh trekking later, Seth finally reached a clearing in the heavy undergrowth and sighed in relief. However, as he tried to garner further information about his position, he began to feel tremors in the ground, a heavy rumbling that put Seth on edge.

Turning his head, Seth noticed a massive jaguar, standing nearly above the massive trees, charging right towards him.

"Well shi-" Unable to finish his sentence, Seth had to start sprinting away to escape the absolutely massive creature.

Weaving and darting through trees, he did everything in his power to escape the gigantic apex predator that was pursuing him.

40 minutes later

It seemed as if Seth had lost the giant creature, and was panting while holding onto his thighs. An exhausting chase, he'd nonetheless succeeded in his escape. Straightening up and wiping some sweat from his brow, he once again set off on his trek, only now having no idea where he'd come from, as opposed to just where his destination was.

Nonetheless, the chase had been advantageous to a degree, as the teen emerged from the jungle, and noticed a small settlement nearby. Just a modest village, it was nonetheless civilization, and precisely what the young pirate needed. Making his way towards it with a degree of urgency, he eventually entered it. Ignoring the strange looks he received, visitors clearly being a rarity here, he made his way towards the nearest trough of water. Before promptly falling to his knees and greedily lapping as much of it up as possible, attracting him more odd stares.

"Ah." Seth sighed contentedly as his head emerged.

"Uh sir, are you okay?" One townsperson asked.

"I am now, thank you for the water." Seth replied, beaming.

"You could've asked, we would've given you some..."

"It's fine, I didn't want to intrude."

At that moment, a panicked looking man came sprinting down a path on the opposite side of the town, garnering the attention of everyone in the town, turning it away from Seth's antics.

Coming to a halt in the middle of the street, the man's breath was ragged, and he desperately tried to communicate.

"There's...there's..." He got out between harsh breaths.

"Come on sir, out with it!" A different man cried out.

"I've got this." Seth explained before promptly grabbing the man and dunking his head in the trough for a number of seconds.

People ran over to try and stop him, but the teen pulled the man completely out again, now soaking wet and somewhat disorientated.

"Now, what were you saying?"

"There's pirates attacking our town!" He cried.

Everyone in the village gasped, except Seth, who looked contemplative.

"What crew are they?"

"They're the Fist Pirates!"

"They sound tough, where's your town?"

"Just keep heading down the path and you'll reach it."

"Alright then, I'm off to go find myself some new crew." The young captain explained before dropping the man and setting off down the path.

"Uh, do you want us to send help?" The man from before asked.

"No need, I can take care of this myself."

And with that, Seth set off, everyone looking at him in a perplexed manner.

Meanwhile

"You won't find anything of value here..." An elderly man grunted out.

His face was under the boot of a far more formidable looking individual, a large man in black pants and boots who stood at roughly 6 feet, with a muscular and broad figure to match. Hanging off his shoulders was a vibrant red jacket, his arms not in the sleeves. Bandages were wrapped around his lower torso, and several healed wounds adjourned his body. Black hair covered his head, with it kept quite short, no doubt to keep it out of his way. Blue orbs gazed down dispassionately at the man under his boot.

"We're a poor villag-argh." The pirate pushed his foot down slightly harder.

"Believe me, we'll find something of value here. I've heard the slave trade is booming."

"Let him go!" A feminine voice cried out.

The elderly man's eyes widened as a young woman, around eighteen or so, with brown hair and green eyes came charging towards the plate, wielding a wooden weapon. Swinging at the pirate, his hand flew out with impressive speed, shattering the wooden object and grabbing her by the throat, lifting her high into the air with the utmost of ease.

"Especially the women." He finished, staring directly into her eyes with a coldness that deeply frightened the young woman.

"Damnit, you wouldn-argh."

"Father!"

"But I will." The man explained, his boot pushing down farther on the man's head, empty eyes never once straying from the woman's.

Meanwhile

Seth made his way into the neighboring town. It was apparent that they hadn't had much to begin with, but the Pirates had been ruthlessly efficient in stripping what they could. Doors and walls were knocked down, cabinets thrown open and floorboards ripped up to try and find any hidden valuable in the village.

"Well well, what do we have here?" A deep male voice asked.

"Looks like some fresh meat." An unsettling feminine voice replied.

Eyes darting around, Seth was shocked to see two figures dart out from behind nearby buildings. Soaring with surprising speed, they leapt into an arc, stopping as they reached their apex above the nature of the street.

One was a short and stocky man who wielded a nunchuck in each hand, which was spinning wildly, one above his head and the other to his side. Dressed in a white gi, a purple belt was wrapped around his waist.

The other was a tall and thin...man? Despite having clearly masculine features, including leg hair and a beard, he was wearing a short light pink dress with a brown belt wrapped around it, ballerina flats, a butterfly hair clip, and absurdly thick makeup, including pink lipstick and purple eyeshadow.

"I'm Mike!" The stocky man announced.

"And I'm Kate!" The thin one announced.

"I'm Seth." The captain proudly added.

"You ruined our monologue!" The okama yelled.

"Oh, my bad." Seth replied, rubbing the back of his sheepishly.

"We'll just have to kick his ass." The shorter one rationalized.

"Oh yes, there's no chance that an amateur like you can hope to defeat us. For you see, we're the third and fourth strongest members of the Fist Pirate's Southern Blue fleet!" Katie pontificated.

"So prepare to enter a world of pain!" Mike roared before charging forward, nunchuck spinning wildly.

Seth backpedalled, but narrowly avoided a rapidly spinning blow nonetheless. Dodging proved to be difficult when the shorter combatant was putting on the heat. His nunchuck offered a degree of unpredictability, and Seth couldn't predict the, very well. Darting under and between blows, Seth knew he couldn't keep it up forever, and knew he had to put on the heat.

Deciding to put a bit of distance between the two, Seth hurtled backwards into a backflip, his skin beginning to take on a grayish tone as his hands pushed off the ground. Mike was barreling towards him, nunchucks spinning at an incredible rate as he swung at the rapidly changing boy. Using his arm to parry, Seth batted away the martial artist's forearm, well below the nunchuck's trajectory, before twisting his body and delivering a powerful blow to the man's substantial stomach.

A grunt escaped Mike's lips as he was knocked backwards. Staggering, but nonetheless having regained his footing, the speed of his weapons had slowed. Looking up, he was met with a powerful punch to the right side of his jaw, shocking the stocky fighter and sending him hurtling into a nearby building. Bringing it down.

Kate's eyes bulged wide open as she looked in surprise at her companion's rapid defeat.

"Not bad, but he was a mere purple belt, whereas I am a brown belt. Prepare yourself, hwah!" She cried, regaining her composure and striking a flamboyant fighting position, one leg bent up, and both arms poised above his head, the wrists bending at a ninety degree angle to face Seth.

Suddenly, she was off, having sprung off one leg and begun a corkscrew through the air. Blinking at the unorthodox fighting style, Seth nonetheless prepared himself and avoided a rapid palm strike that almost caught him off guard. Landing on one foot, the okama continued with a number of rapid strikes, all of which Seth was barely able to evade by darting to the side and stepping backwards. Arching her body with incredible flexibility, Kate sent her leg around for a devastating kick, which Seth ducked under and reciprocated with a powerful blow to the back.

Taking it in her stride, Kate spun away and used her leg to meet Seth's oncoming punch with a powerful kick.

"You hit pretty hard." Seth complimented.

"You're not too bad yours-"

"For a girl."

A look of unbridled fury crossed Kate's face as she began a wild flurry of kicks too quick for even Seth to dodge. Knocked back by a number of them, he flapped his wings and managed to soar over the oncoming cyclone of doom. Turning in the air and flapping with all of his might, Seth dive bombed down, fist cocked back. The okama pivoted around, bringing her leg up for a mighty kick.

The two met, but Seth's impetus caused Kate's leg to fly under her, causing her body to jolt up, where her face met with Seth's other fist. Sent flying backwards with a dazed expression Nd bruised face, the okama skidded along, defeated.

Landing in a kneeling position, Seth stood up and contracted his wings. Walking over towards Mike, he grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up.

"Where's your captain?" He demanded.

The stocky fighter had only just come back to his senses and looked most dazed. "He's in the town's centre! Please don't hurt me!" Mike whimpered.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to."

Dropping the fighter with a resounding thump, the young captain made his way to face his next opponent.

Meanwhile

The man from before stood in the centre of the town, a handful of his crew nearby, pillaging what they could from the area.

Nearby, a figure clad entirely in black landed atop the building next to him, only a strip of flesh around his eyes visible on the otherwise entirely black and skin tight outfit. Dropping down next to the man, he fell to one knee.

"Report, Hayabusa."

"Kate and Mike have been defeated by a newcomer, captain." The ninja explained.

"Marine?"

"Not likely. He's alone and dressed casually."

"Strong?"

"Took them down in a few blows. He seems to have some kind of Devil Fruit."

"Very good. Thank you, Hayabusa."

The ninja nodded to him before leaping back atop the nearby building, likely to complete further reconnaissance.

"Couple of blows, huh? This could be fun." The captain explained as a grin came over his face.

Meanwhile

Seth calmly strolled towards the centre of town, calm despite the carnage and looting that went I around him. He received a number of odd looks, and was eventually stopped by a large, brutish looking man. He looked to stand at around seven feet tall, with an incredibly broad chest and muscular build, something he evidently wasn't afraid to show off judging by his attire consisting only of a pair of short shorts and boots.

"Where do ya think yer goin'?" He demanded.

"Down the path." Seth calmly replied.

"Fahahahaha-oof." His laughter was interrupted by a powerful fist to his stomach that sent the large man hurtling down the street, eventually colliding with a building and bringing it down.

As smoke and dust flew up, a figure could be sighted walking through it. The captain of the Fist Pirates emerged from it, sizing Seth up with cold eyes.

"I assume you're the one who's been beating up my crew?"

"And I'm guessing you're the captain?"

A grin appeared on the faces of both captains, this was what they'd both been waiting for, a worthy opponent to give them a challenge, as opposed to weak thugs or civilians.

Judging by the air of his opponent, Seth assumed he'd have to go all out from the start, and thus he began to morph, skin going grayer. It seemed as if his opponent had a similar idea, as he shrugged off his coat, now ready to face his opponent at full power.

Bending down and placing one hand on the ground, Seth would make the first move, rocketing forward to deliver a punch to his opponent, who would rapidly move into a fluid block, halting the younger fighter's momentum.

"Those guys you fought before were purple and brown belts." He explained as Seth struggled against his guard. "I'm a black belt and, as you will see..." He began before pushing with his arm, sending the Devil Fruit user off balance and then delivering a devastating punch to his gut. "There's a world of difference between them."

Seth felt as if his entire world had been shaken by that punch. It was truly devastating, yet he was quickly back on his feet, cracking his neck from side to side. "Not too shabby." He complemented, before once again hurtling forwards.

The flurry of punches he released would be met with a series of textbook blocks, until he attempted to deliver a powerful uppercut to his opponent. "Ancient Ascension!" Seth would cry. The rival captain effortlessly blocked the punch, but was shocked when his opponent spun around and used his momentum to deliver an elbow to his chin, knocking him off his feet.

However, once again, the fighter was able to get to his feet.

"Heh, not bad kid."

This time, it was the rival captain who initiated an attack, going on the offense for the first time in the battle. His blows were precise and quick, but too well practiced. It was obvious to Seth where he intended to strike, since he essentially broadcast it in his buildup. It allowed him to evade and parry the attacks, although the latter was quite difficult, the blows sending vibrations through his body from their sheer power.

Eventually, he delivered his own punch to his opponent's jaw, but when he attempted to continue the assault, the rival captain was able to block, evidently not dazed.

"Hey, what's your name?" Seth inquired, the two not moving from their position.

"I'm 'Shockwave Fist' Cole, yourself?"

"I'm Seth. Ashton D. Seth."

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, Cole, I wanted to extend a wager to you."

"And what would that be?"

"It's a bet on the outcome of our fight. If I win, you join my crew."

Cole wanted to laugh at the sheer audacity of his opponent. He was demanding he, already the captain of a crew, admittedly a subsidiary one, join his crew on the outcome of their fight.

"Assume I accept, what could you possibly offer if I win?"

"You can have my ship!"

"Your ship?"

"Yeah, it's huge, worth a fortune." Seth assured him.

"Alright, kid. You've got yourself a deal!" Cole replied.

With this, the two resumed their battle. Each fought with passion, showing a love for combat, a burning desire to surpass all others and become the very best. Cole landed a few glancing blows on Seth, many of which hurt a great deal, while Seth landed more hits, with them not having the same impact as his opponent.

Wings outstretching suddenly, Seth would flap up in an attempt to deliver a knee strike to Cole's chin which the rival captain would slap down, only to send Seth into a somersault that resulted in him delivering a devastating kick to the back of Cole's head, causing him to stumble forward.

Quickly landing, a short distance away, Seth would poise his wings and push off with all of his might, flapping as he spun in a corkscrew, quickly gathering momentum as he formed a cyclone with his own body. "Tailspin!" He roared.

Turning to face this rapidly approaching threat, Cole cocked back his fist and prepared to counter the attack. "Shockwave Fist!" He roared, the attack which gave him his epithet being delivered to Seth's oncoming one.

The collision of the two caused, coincidentally, a shockwave to be released, before both fighters were sent hurtling backwards. Both skidding to a halt, it was apparent that both attacks had an effect. Seth was panting heavily, blood starting to stream down from the top of his head, while Cole's fist was a bloodied mess, much of the flesh torn off by Seth's sheer momentum.

Shaking his arm slightly, the martial artist looked over at Seth, a coy grin on his face.

"You don't look too good, kid."

"I could say the same about you."

The two then proceeded to charge forward once more, meeting in the centre. Their exchange was slightly slowed this time, Seth's somewhat increased sluggishness offset by Cold favoring his good arm. Capitalizing on this, the younger fighter started delivering blows to his opponent's weaker side, many of which he struggled to block.

Grunting, Cole reared his fist back and struck at his opponent. "Shockwave Fist!" He roared.

Knowing he couldn't withstand a blow of that strength, Seth took off, quite literally, as Cole's fist collided with the ground, causing a minor earthquake to occur that bought down many of the surrounding buildings.

Looking up, he saw that Seth had started to descend, having already flown quite high into the air. He was rapidly gaining speed as his fist trailed behind him, cocked back for a massive punch.

"Damnit, I can't use that attack in rapid succession!" Cole grunted to himself through gritted teeth.

Seeing that Seth was growing closer, he leapt backwards, the necessary adjustment to trajectory slowing the younger fighter slightly. However, he nonetheless soared toward Cole, who was raising his non-injured arm.

"Shockwave Fist!"

"Meteor!"

The two fists collided in mid-air, only this time Cole's arm buckled from previous exertion, before he was struck in the chest by Seth's own, causing his eyes to widen from the pain. Pushed to the ground by the sheer impetus, the Devil Fruit user pushed him into the ground, resulting in a substantial crater forming from the sheer power.

Standing above his opponent, Seth breathed heavily as the dust started to clear, only to reveal Cole slowly getting to his feet.

"Damnit, I won't...lose." He grunted before coughing up a substantial amount of blood.

However, Seth had already leapt forward, and delivered a punch to his stomach, causing him to once again wretch blood as he was sent flying back. The rival captain lay there, until he slowly and shakily got to his feet.

Another punch sent him hurtling backwards, only for him to rise once more.

"Why won't you stay down?" Seth demanded.

"Because, if I do, I'll never...fulfill my dream."

"To have the shit beaten out of you?"

"No, damnit! My dream, to be the...greatest martial artist in the world." He explained. "There's...no way to do it unless I get onto the Grand Line branch of...the Fist Pirates!"

"How long have you been deployed in South Blue?" Seth asked, his voice softening.

"That's...ugh, none of your business."

"How do you expect to become strong enough to reach that goal if you spend your entire life here? You've got to see the world in order to achieve it!"

"Gah, I'll be promoted...eventually."

"Come with me, the world's greatest martial artist would make a great First Mate for a future Yonko." Seth explained.

Cole initially looked at Seth like he was an absolute madman, but noticed an earnestly in his eyes that he'd never encountered before. A look of passion, as if this guy was either going to achieve his dream, or die in the process.

"Heh, you've got balls kid. I like that."

"So you'll come with me."

"I guess I've got no choice. I did lose the bet."

With this, Seth reverted back to his normal form and clapped his newfound First Mate on the shoulder, causing him to wince slightly. Wrapping his arm around his shoulder, he essentially dragged him out of the crater and in the general direction of ship, Cole picking his coat up along the way.

"To the ship!"

30 Minutes Later

"Do you know where the bloody thing is?" Cole demanded.

"On the shore." Seth reassured him.

"Ugh, of all the strong madmen on the sea I had to get the idiot."

"Ah, there it is!" Seth suddenly announced, dragging his barely willing First Mate towards the small raft he'd come in.

"This is the massive ship that you were betting?" Cole demanded.

"Sure is!" Seth replied, as he pushed it towards the water,

"I bet my freedom...for that?"

"Sure did."

"Why you little!"

And so the grand adventure of Seth's pirate crew began...with the First Mate furiously chasing his captain around the beach, trying to murder him with his bare hands.

Meanwhile

Hayabusa silently slipped away from the village where some of the citizens from the neighboring settlement had taken up arms and contained most of the crew. A handful had managed to escape, but many had fled into the island's dangerous jungle.

Reaching into a small pouch on his leg, he produced a Den Den Mushi which he held up to his mouth.

"Hayabusa here, inform Ryu that the South Blue subsidiary has been defeated and detained, and that Cole has gone rogue."

 **...**

 **A/N: And there's the second chapter. It's shorter than the first one, but I felt as if that was the right length, and wanted to conclude it there. The First Mate has appeared, and Cole will probably be the only other character that I create myself on the crew. And yes, this story takes place in South Blue! Shocking, I know, but I wanted to put a slight spin in the tried and true formula that these stories typically follow, so I figured why not have it begin in another ocean? Very little is known about the other oceans, which grants me both more freedom as an author, and a chance to put my own spin on the world.**

 **Until next time, stay classy.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece.**

 **A/N: Well, here we are, the third chapter of Rise of the Dawn Pirates. I've had a great deal of support and OCs, and I'd like to thank everyone who's contributed, it really helps with inspiration for writing! Anyway, enough of my incoherent rambling, on to the chapter.**

...

"I liked my idea better." Seth complained as he rowed. Once again, the crew found themselves out on open water, no island in sight since neither of them were capable of navigation in any capacity.

"I've already told you, just because you won the bet for me to be your First Mate, that doesn't mean you own me."

"Silence, slave!"

"Don't make me nearly drown you again."

The two proceeded to move along in silence, only the sound of Seth's rowing between them. Cole looked up his rum bottle, having long since finished its contents. Disappointed, the martial artist nonchalantly threw it into the ocean and leant back in the boat,

"You know, I've been thinking." Seth began.

"Is it about rowing?"

"No."

"Well it should be."

"We need a name for our crew."

"Crew? There's only two of us!"

"That counts as a crew...probably."

"Well, I'll just consult the Bureau of Piracy!"

"There's a Bureau of Piracy?"

"Of course not, you dolt!" Cole exasperatedly cried.

"Anyway, I was thinking that we should be called the Shirtless Pirates!"

"That's perhaps the most stupid thing I've ever heard you say, and that's saying something."

"What's wrong with it?"

"We'll never get any women into this god forsaken crew!"

"Think about it, we both wear our shirts open!"

"Shouldn't we be the Open Shirt Pirates then?" Cole reasoned.

"That just sounds stupid!"

"I don't hear you coming up with anything better!"

The heated debate was interrupted by a ship sailing towards them. It was a somewhat average looking ship, likely belonging to a small group of traveling merchants. Rowing towards it cautiously, Seth was fairly certain that, were the ship to sink, Cole wouldn't save him, being the worst First Mate in history.

As they grew closer towards the side of the boat, a dapper young man walked over, dressed in a smart looking suit, something of a rarity when out at sea, surrounded by the world's greatest ruffians.

"Ahoy there, lads." He greeted with a casual wave.

"Uh...ahoy right back at you." Seth replied enthusiastically.

"You seem lost." The gentleman offered.

"We've been rowing for nearly two days."

"Well, you're no doubt looking for an island?"

"We sure are."

"Well then, you're in luck, we ourselves are heading to the nearby Opes Island. You could come with us."

"Do I have to row?"

"Of course not, come aboard!" The man offered, courtesy never failing him.

Ropes were thrown over and promptly attached, despite Cole remaining sedentary, and the rowboat was hoisted up.

Getting out, Seth observed a large crowd of well dressed gents staring at him.

"You coming?" He asked Cole.

"No, I'm fine here."

"Do please make yourself comfortable, I'll bring the tea shortly.

Meanwhile

A thick air of smoke and potent smell of booze filled a small bar. It was essentially empty, with only a handful of assorted ruffians seated around, nursing their beers, dividing treasure or playing card games, the rules of which were known only to the players.

One individual stood out amongst the group, a slightly tanned individual, dressed in an open blue shirt with a t-shirt underneath, black jeans and converse, and a tonfa strapped to his belt. A mane of messy brown hair hung over his forehead, constantly being pushed out of his eyes as he looked over a map marked with black ink, a slightly drained beer sitting next to him.

His musings were interrupted by the doors swinging wide open, and a set of well dressed gentlemen entered the bar, looking disgusted by their surroundings. On the right stood a giant of a man, who was massively overweight, a huge stomach extending out from his body. Despite his slovenly appearance, he was impeccably dressed in a dark green tuxedo, complete with a golden monocle. On the left was a thin black man dressed in a long, purple jacket with a pair of white, leopard print pants, and a wide brimmed purple hat.

In the centre was an impeccably dressed man in a white dress shirt and black suit jacket. A black tie hung tightly around his neck, and a pair of black dress pants completed his attire. A jolt of brilliant blonde hair covered his head, neatly combed over to the right as he dispassionately looked over the bar.

Setting his eyes on the man right in front of him, the trio walked over towards him, before the one in the centre gestured with his head, causing the large one to lightly tap on the man's shoulder.

Jolting around from his map, he was shocked to see three strange looking gentlemen facing him.

"Greetings sir, may I inquire as to what your name is?" The blonde one inquired.

"I'm Darrius." He replied, extending his hand for the other man to shake.

Politely, the blonde extended his hand and returned the gesture.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance. I'm Ford Reginald. Now, Mr. Darrius, could I interest you with a position in my crew?"

"Uh, sorry. I'm not really looking for a crew right now." The brunette replied, turning back to his map.

"But you misunderstand..." The gentleman began before promptly grabbing Darrius's shoulder and, seemingly pivoting at an impossible angle with his body, sent the man flying through the doors, and skidding down the street somewhat. "That wasn't a request."

Getting to his feet, the recently thrown man dusted himself off slightly and grabbed his tonfa.

"Alrighty then, since you're so forthright."

Meanwhile

Seth put down his third teacup as the boat finally cruised into the dock. The entire trip had been rather odd, with nobody speaking to him, but sizing him up with their eyes, attempting to discern something about him. Glad that it was nearly over, he made his way over to Cole, who hadn't moved from their boat.

"Not to alarm you, but I think we might be on a boat of queers." Seth quietly whispered.

Cole raised an eyebrow at this. "You mean you really haven't worked it out yet?"

"Worked what out."

"Christ."

"Alright, chaps, we've arrived." The man from before announced, reappearing from whatever depths he'd been hiding in for the trip.

Following his lead, Seth walked down the ramp that had recently been set up, Cole lazily following behind him, only to find a group of similarly dressed gentlemen awaiting them.

"Greetings, sirs, I'm Ford Reginald, what are your names?" The one in the centre politely asked.

"I'm Seth and this is Cole." The teen replied, the elder crew member merely grunting in affirmation.

"Well, gents, would you two be interested in joining my crew?" He asked politely.

"Sorry, but we're already our own crew. You can join ours if you want."

"You seem to misunderstand. I wasn't offering." Reginald added, eyes narrowing slightly as the gentlemen around him started to move away slightly.

"I see how it is." Seth replied, body beginning to morph as he moved into his hybrid form.

Shooting forward, he delivered a devastating punch to Reginald's cheek, only for his head to...spin around and send Seth flying past him. Skidding to a halt a distance away, Seth looked up in utter shock.

"I must've gotten a lot stronger if my punches can do that to a guy's neck..."

"Unfortunately, my good man, you're not quite that powerful." The blonde explained as he calmly turned to face Seth, his head having stopped its rotation.

"Wait, what?"

"My apologies, but you'll just have to see."

With this, Seth charged forward once more, aiming at Reginald's stomach, his head clearly a poor target when his torso began to spin rapidly. Sent flying away, Seth skidded to a stop once again, only for the rival fighter to dart forward, hand rotating wildly as he delivered a devastating blow to Seth's face, the rotation creating additional impetus and causing the younger fighter to rotate slightly as he was sent flying backwards.

Dizzied slightly, but able to halt his momentum with his wings, the teen was shocked when Reginald grabbed both of his legs before his torso began to rotate wildly. Unnerving to onlookers, as his legs and head remained stationary, Seth was spun around at incredibly high speed, before being hurtled into a nearby building.

Shakily getting to his feet, the young captain stumbled from side to side as he attempted to regain his balance. His opponent was proving impossible to even damage, and his attacks left Seth nauseous.

"Had enough yet, old chap?" Reginald asked politely as he strolled over to his now disheveled opponent.

"Bah, I'm barely getting started." Seth taunted, somewhat shakily.

"Empty rhetoric won't help you now, unfortunately."

Despite Reginald's warning, Seth once again leapt forward, a punch aimed towards the man's head, unfortunately it didn't connect, the elder fighter catching the fist and beginning a wild rotation, dizzying Seth as he spiraled uncontrollably in the man's grip before his body spun independently, moving at a one hundred and eighty degree angle, Reginald releasing the younger fighter just before he finished his half pivot, throwing the young fighter towards another building with immense power, causing him to go hurtling through several.

Looking at the rubble with a degree of curiosity, Reginald's body completed its spin, correcting the horrifying posture, his chest facing the opposite direction to his head. Dusting himself off slightly, the gent was understandably shocked when Seth rose once again, stumbling even more this time, falling over several times.

"Not bad." Seth admitted as he charged forward once again, only to stumble wildly off to one direction, entirely missing Reginald, before being unable to halt his momentum and sliding into yet another.

"Unfortunately, my good chap, you seem to be doing my end of the fighting for me." A peal of pretentious laughter echoed from the assorted gentlemen.

"Mighty fine jape, sir!"

"Indeed!"

Wings extending out, Seth used them to balance as he stood up once more, the dizziness now having subsided. "Alright, straight forward offenses aren't going to work, time to spice it up a bit."

Leaping up, Seth flew above his opponent, arm extending out behind him for a massive punch as he flew down at Reginald, who calmly raised an arm for a counter. Naturally, he was surprised when the teen flew past his arm, landing behind him before performing a rounded leg sweep that knocked the rival fighter off his feet for the first time in the fight. The pterodactyl Zoan user then shot up, fist coming up for an uppercut.

"Ancient Ascens-"

Seth's attack was interrupted by a violently rotating forearm and fist that connected with his own jaw and sent him flying. "Rising Tornado." Reginald calmly stated, contrasting Seth's gusto.

Flying through the air once more, this time unintentionally, Seth steadied himself after some effort, only for Reginald to appear before him, forearm once more spinning rapidly. Diving under the oncoming attack with a rapid flap of his wings, the captain saw Reginald go flying over him as he prepared himself for his next maneuver. "If you like spinning so much..." The teen then leapt forwards, one wing flapping as his body started to spin, creating a tornado with his sheer momentum, wind gathering around him and replicating his motion.

"Tailspin!"

Having landed, Reginald cocked his own arm back, it starting to spin at incredible speed as the tornado came towards him. "Drill!" Meeting at the perfect moment, the two would collide and cause a mild shockwave, winds blowing around from their sheer momentum. Although seemingly equally matched at the beginning, Seth began to slow, his momentum halted by Reginald's attack.

Eventually, the teen started to spiral the opposite way, eventually being sent flying by Reginald's blow, spinning uncontrollably as he skidded along the pavement, being battered the entire way by the unrelenting Earth.

Seth couldn't even tell when his momentum had stopped. The notions of up and down had blurred into one mess, the entire world spinning uncontrollably. He'd nearly passed out when he'd gone flying, and the young captain had no chance of getting to his feet. Nonetheless he tried, and eventually knelt up, only to immediately fall to the side once more.

"Now, my good chap, you're probably wondering who I am and how I beat you."

Unable to get up, Seth spat at what he thought was Reginald, but was in fact just a pavement that he'd sprayed with saliva.

"Well, I am also the captain of a pirate crew, the Gentlemen Pirates. Which you too are now a proud member of." Seth was now able to keep better tabs on where objects were, and was no longer totally paralyzed by disorientation.

"As for how I bested you, well I in fact ate the Spin Spin Devil Fruit, which made me into a spinman. The effects should be obvious." The man explained, chuckling at his own joke, peals of annoyingly pretentious laughter following him.

"Heh, I've got nothing to worry about, my trusted First Mate will stop you. Cole, take this guy down!" Seth yelled, looking to where the martial artist had been standing to see...nothing.

"Uh, he's not exactly loyal yet."

"No need to worry, he'll soon be joining you."

"In kicking your ass?"

"You certainly are contentious, you'l go far in the Gentlemen Pirates." With this, the man delivered a rotating punch to Seth's head, knocking him out cold.

With this, the large man in the green suit made his way over and effortlessly picked up the smaller combatant with one hand.

"That was 'Shockwave Fist' Cole. I'm not entirely certain how young Seth managed to get him in his crew, but the fact that he's here indicates that something's happened to the South Fist Pirates." Reginald noted, beginning to walk away and gesturing for his crew to follow him.

"Which means..." The large man began.

"That the balance of power has been upset. We must move quickly, as soon as Wadlow hears of this, he'll take action. 'Shockwave Fist' is an ally we need if we are to survive, let alone emerge victorious. Find him and inform me. We're going to need all of the strength we can find."

...

 **A/N: And that's a wrap. The shortest chapter yet, unfortunately, but don't worry, this trend won't continue forever. I just wanted to do it for a couple of reasons. One, to try and create a multi-chapter arc, as opposed to a series of single chapter ones, two because I felt like it would be a good time to end the chapter and create some suspense, mystery and tension, and three, to get the chapter out earlier. The next one's already in the works, where you'll find the answer to questions such as 'What's happened to Cole?" "What's going to happen to Seth?" "Who's Wadlow?" "Will Lochstar ever shut up?" Anyway, thanks for all of your support, and if you've got any ideas for OCs, send them my way.**

 **Darrius belong to robbo2480.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Aye aye aye, it's been a while since the last chapter, particularly considering my stellar record up to this point. Unfortunately, school's been pretty hectic, and I've just lacked the motivation to write any Fanfiction. Fortunately, I'm back now, and should be able to resume a more normal schedule. So, without further ado, let's get into the chapter!**

...

Seth's opened his eyes to a dingy prison cell, thick metal bars in front of him and harsh concrete the substance used for essentially everything else. The only light provided to him was by lanterns, all outside of his cell, sunlight not penetrating this fortress. Pushing himself up on the slightly damp floor, the young captain felt as if he had been trapped inside a tornado, a powerful headache and strong sense of dizziness hitting him as he sat up.

"God." Seth groaned.

"Ah, they got you too?"

Head snapping around, Seth noticed a young man who was dressed in a suit, much of his appearance obscured by the dim lights.

"Why are you dressed like that? Are you with those guys?" The captain demanded.

"I could ask you the same thing."

Looking down, Seth noticed that he was also dressed in formal attire, something most unusual for the typically scruffy teen.

"What the?"

"So, you're in the same situation. Good to have someone else along for the ride, I'm Darrius." He explained, waving.

"And I'm Seth." The captain replied, returning the wave.

"So who beat you up?" Darrius asked casually.

"Blonde guy, really tough."

"Span around?"

"You too?"

"Did he mention anything about a crew to you?" The enigmatic teen asked.

"Yeah, the Gentlemen Pirates?"

"I'm assuming he wants us to join his crew then."

"Well, we should just team up on him!" Seth announced, attempting to stand, but finding his movement woefully restricted by his chains.

"If he gives us the chance..." Darrius lamented.

With this, a slight shuddering could be felt in the Earth, and a formidable shadow was cast across the one source of light. Thundering down the stairs was the huge man in green, with him nearly filling the entire doorway in terms of length and having to stoop to fit underneath the doorway.

Fumbling with a comically undersized key, he eventually unlocked the gate to the prison, before grabbing and undoing the chains that held both Seth and Darrius. Although they both attempted to escape, he promptly slammed them onto the ground via the chain, small pieces of the ceiling falling off, and the entire ground shaking. Essentially dragging them along, he held them incredibly tight, and for now, escape seemed impossible.

...

Cole made his way down the street of a small town, the bodies of several well dressed gentlemen littered in his path behind him. They were nothing if not persistent, the pirate had made his way to the other side of the island, and he was still being pursued. Fortunately, the martial artist's beatings always knocked them out for long enough that he was long gone upon their awakening.

Seeing what appeared to be a bar, Cole made his way towards it, only to hear the sound of rapid footsteps behind him. Ducking, the man caught his would be attacker off guard and was able to perform a powerful judo throw that sent the man flying through the bar's doors, and skidding along the ground. Walking in shortly after, Cole noticed that nobody seemed to particularly care, with nobody having ceased their card games or drinking.

"Now this is my kind of place." The martial artist chuckled to himself, a smirk coming across his face as he took a seat on one of the stools. "Rum!"

...

A face full of dirt, grime, and various other unspecified substances was not exactly Seth's idea of a good time, yet he'd been given it anyway. Having collided with each step of a staircase on the way up, the young captain was pleased when he finally saw sunlight, if blinded somewhat by the sheer radiance.

Yanked to his feet suddenly, Seth found himself standing at attention next to Darrius, once immaculate appearance undermined by him being caked in dirt and his hair ruffled as per usual. All around him, the Gentlemen Pirates stood, a myriad of fine wines and cigars between them, cutting a bizarre figure for a crew of rapscallions.

"Ah, our new recruits have joined us." Reginald announced, flamboyantly gesturing with his hands.

"Not this again." Darrius murmured to himself.

"Welcome to the Gentleman Pirates, I see that you gents have changed into suitable attire...if a little disheveled." The captain observed, brushing Seth's hair from his face distastefully.

Lunging forward, the young pirate found himself restrained by the behemoth's grip, the chain not relenting as he moved forward but an inch.

"Full of vigor, I see." Reginald mused as he finished moving Seth's hair. "Good, you're going to need it." With this, he turned away from the two unwilling crew members. "On this island is a Marine Base. The two of you are going to defeat every individual stationed at that base. And with that, your initiation will be complete."

"Wait!" Seth called.

"Hm?" Reginald inquired, turning to face the younger pirate.

"Can we eat first? I'm starved."

"Of course, bring them some food." With a snap of his fingers, two waiters emerged, silver trays delicately balanced on their palms.

Shaking his head, Darrius nonetheless accepted the food being placed into his mouth, washed down periodically with water from fine crystal glasses.

"I see you're wise enough not to bite the hand that feeds you." Reginald complimented Seth, observing his vivacious appetite.

"I'll need all of my strength if I'm going to beat you." Seth replied.

"Very amusing. We'll see how long that gusto lasts. Need I remind you how our last encounter panned out?" Reginald asked.

"That was then, this is now."

"I'm not sure whether you're enormously brave or incredibly stupid. Although I suppose there isn't much difference." Reginald mused.

"I'd rather be an idiot than a coward." Seth shot back.

"Well then, no trouble for you there."

And with this, the two young pirates found themselves dragged along once again, the large First Mate pulling them along. Embracing it, Seth dropped to the ground and was dragged along in a sitting position whilst Darrius chose to remain upright, stumbling along as he went.

...

Eventually, the four reached a grand looking Marine base. With a large wrought iron fence, it was imposing to most criminals, a symbol of justice, a vigil of the law. Of course, this meant it had to be torn down post-haste by the pirates who stood before it.

"Alright, chaps. Brutus is going to let you off here, feel free to wreak havoc, we'll come and detain you when you're done." Reginald explained, and with this, the two were grabbed, only to have their chains undone by the captain, then being thrown over the walls by Brutus, directly in front of numerous Marines stationed there who stood in awe of the sheer bravado of their would be attackers. Shortly thereafter, Darrius's tonfa flew over the wall, landing next to him.

"Sound the alarm!" One roared, as they promptly fled, seeking weapons.

Rising to his feet, Seth shook his head, hair once more falling to its scruffy resting position. "I thought the guy'd never shut up."

Meanwhile, Darrius was looking at his own hair, aghast. "They gave me a man bun? I mean, come on, a man bun?!"

With this, Marines began pouring out of the large base, weapons in hand, some grasping rifles and others wielding swords. Rapidly forming a semi-circle in front of the two young pirates, they would've deterred most pirates from attacking. Unfortunately, they weren't dealing with most pirates.

"I'll take the fifty on the right. You take the fifty on the right." Seth explained.

"Race you?" Darrius retorted.

"Naturally."

And with this, they were off. Seth leapt forward and delivered a powerful kick to the nearest Marine's face, promptly dodging under several bullets and punching the one next nearest to him. He followed this up with a rapid leg sweep, knocking several Marines over, before shooting to his feet in order to deliver a punch to another.

Looking over to see how Darrius was doing, the young captain saw him easily dispatching his share of goons, knocking blades away with his tonfa and using his free hand to deliver devastating punches, a few kicks joining the mix.

"Looks like I'll have to step things up a notch." Seth observed.

Morphing into his hybrid form, the young pirate redoubled his efforts, punches now sending several Marines flying, kicks doing yet more damage.

"Well, if you're going to play that game..." Darrius called over.

With this, he too began to morph. He grew taller, fur beginning to spout from his body as a snout formed and vicious fangs grew from his teeth. Standing as a half-man, half-wolf, Darrius now resembled the werewolves of old, and grinned maliciously as the gathered Marines gazed nervously at him. "I guess it's time to get serious." He finished, before pouncing on his foes.

...

As the carnage unfolded in the courtyard, an oddly proportioned individual gazed from the window. With arms far too large for his body, he cut a strange figure, particularly due to his comically undersized t-shirt, barely covering any of his arms and leaving much of his midriff exposed.

"We seem to have an infestation on our hands." He noted.

"Si." A heavily accented voice replied.

Stepping from the shadows, a man dressed in a matador's outfit emerged. White, as was Marine standard, his face was obscured somewhat by a large sombrero that was unusual for his attire. Eyes hidden, a thin mustache on his olive skin was still apparent.

...

"Five minutes twenty three seconds." Darrius announced, dropping the unconscious body of a defeated Marine onto a pyramid of torsos.

"Five minutes fifteen seconds." Seth replied, sitting atop his own pile.

"Welcome to our base, I see you've made yourself comfortable." A nasally voice called out.

The two teens, both still in hybrid form, looked over to notice a Longarm and matador approaching them. The former dragged a large staff behind him, adding an additional ten feet to his already impressive reach, whilst the latter appeared unarmed.

"We are Captains Longman and Carlos." The Longarm announced.

"Seriously? Your name's actually Longman?" Seth asked, bemusedly.

"Shut up!" The Longarm called back.

"The only thing less subtle would be if you were called 'Longarm'." Darrius added.

"You'll both pay for that. Carlos, take the wolf, I'll handle the pterodactyl freak myself." The Longarm growled.

Taking this as an invitation, Seth shot forward, leaping from the bodies of the Marines, one of whom groaned, and soaring towards Longman, only to be struck in the stomach with the staff, which shot out at an alarming speed and sent the teen flying backwards.

Skidding to a halt a distance away, Seth looked up at his opponent, who was now gripping the staff at his side. It was going to be a long fight.

...

Looking away from the fight that was beginning nearby, Darrius noticed that his opponent had unfurled a red cape from his sleeve.

"Ole!" He called, waving it at his side.

"What the?" Darrius murmured at the parlor trick.

However, Carlos didn't move, and thus Darrius charged forward, aiming to deliver a shattering punch to his opponent. However, when he threw it, the man shot around his body with incredible grace, landing behind the teen. Not wasting an instant, Darrius spun and threw a punch, Carlos raising his cape in defense. Striking the cape, the pirate was shocked to hit a solid surface, arm bouncing off and his body reverberating with recoil.

Stepping back and gripping his fist, the pirate looked up to see Carlos once again waving his cape in taunt. Darrius reached for his tonfa, this was going to get weird, he could tell.

...

Seth was knocked back by the end of the staff for the third time. It wasn't any good, no matter what angle he came from, the Captain's impressive reach and immense speed proved impenetrable. The multiple joints in his elongated arm allowed for the man to wait, angle his blow, and then strike with immense precision, keeping his torso incredibly well guarded, Seth's attacks not even coming close.

It seemed as if he'd have to try something else, if he hoped to win the fight.

"Giving up already? A pity, you talked such a big game." Longman taunted.

"Just getting started." Seth replied.

"I'm sure."

Charging forward, Seth leapt up to deliver a punch to the Longarm, who once again poised himself to knock the captain from the air. Waiting until he got to the range the man had struck at before, Seth's wings suddenly flapped, maneuvering him to the side just as the staff shot forward. With a direct line to the man's head, the pirate swung at the Captain, only to be hit in the stomach by a powerful Palm strike.

Skidding to a halt some distance away, Seth glared up at his opponent, who was smirking bemusedly.

"What's wrong? I thought you were just starting." He taunted.

Oh, he was a dead man.

...

Darrius continued his downright bizarre battle. Every swing of his tonfa was met with the matador raising his cape as a shield, hard as iron with each collision, yet soft as fabric, flowing in Carlos's hands, when not. The fight wasn't helped by the fact that the Captain kept sporadically flitting around the battlefield, leaping around his opponent and landing behind, to the side, or at various other angles.

After once such collision, it was Darrius who leapt backwards, landing nearby before casually spinning his tonfa.

"Alright, what gives?" He demanded.

"Well, wolf boy, it is a tale from many moons ago..." The Spaniard began.

"Get to the point."

"I ate the Hard Hard Fruit, which allows me to make any object I touch as hard as steel!"

"Of course you did." Darrius bemoaned.

...

Rolling through the dirt, Seth stood up once again, dusting himself off slightly as his opponent again recoiled his arms, prepared to strike once again. To the Marine's annoyance, Seth didn't look injured in the slightest, despite the utterly asymmetrical nature of the fight. As the pirate rolled his shoulders and cracked a grin, Longman's patience finally snapped.

"How are you still standing?!" He demanded.

"What's wrong? You were so confident before." Seth replied.

The Marine growled.

"That was fun and all-" Seth mused, the Marine tightening his guard slightly. "But now it's time to get serious." With that, the pirate's grin vanished altogether, replaced by a deathly stare. His eyes bore into his opponent, and Longman felt himself shiver slightly. There was something abnormal about the boy, something had changed, and he felt a new sensation creep into him. Fear.

Shooting forward once again, the teen angled himself towards Longman's head. Still somewhat off guard and startled by the speed, the Marine was still able to prepare a counter, and launched his staff forward once more. However, as his arm soared towards Seth, the pirate flapped his wings with virtuous speed, launching him above the shocked Captain's attack, only to then somersault forward, stretching out upon reaching the other side of his opponent, delivering a powerful spinning kick to the back of the Longarm's head.

As Longman stumbled forward, Seth landed on the ground, pivoted around and delivered a powerful punch to the back of Longman's back, sending him hurtling away. Tumbling across the ground, the Marine managed to keep ahold of his staff.

Not wasting an instant, Seth sprinted along before leaping up, wings seeing him ascend into the sky. Angling himself down, the pirate captain soared towards his opponent, arm trailing behind him.

Standing up, the Longarm grunted and sent his staff flying towards his opponent.

"Meteor!" The two blows met midair, Seth's fist colliding with the staff. A mighty sound was released by the collision, but from the beginning it was apparent who held the upper hand. Longman's staff shattered an instant after the attacks met, and Seth continued. Arm jarred by the impact, the marine went for his alternative attack, and thrust his other arm forward. However, as it hit the pirate, a sickening snap reverberated throughout the courtyard, followed by a ghastly shriek. It was clear Longman's prized arm had been broken.

With no defense left, he was forced to bear the full brunt of Seth's punch, and found himself buried in the ground a mere moment later, bleeding profoundly, and with several teeth knocked out, and lying in a small crater.

"Well, I'm glad that's over." Seth sighed, his casual demeanor returning, in stark contrast to his previous intensity. "I wonder how Darrius is doing?"

...

Cape and tonfa collided with the clanging of steel, cutting a most bizarre sight. Finally withdrawing, Darrius leapt back and skidded to a halt, exhaling as he went. His opponent fought with an irksome energy, never seeming to tire regardless of his flamboyant and acrobatic style of combat. In typical form, he unfurled the cape to the side and held it out. "Ole!" He cried.

Teeth gnashing together, Darrius was overwhelmed by an urge to tear this man apart. His carnivorous urges began to boil over to the surface, and he kept away with a newfound vigor. Recognizing a change, Carlos was on his guard, and found himself struggling to block attacks. Realizing he'd have to change things up somewhat, the marine leapt into the air and furled his cape into a spear like shape. Raising it behind him, Carlos angled, and aimed.

"Lanza!" He cried.

Stabbing down, his blow was deflected by Darrius's tonfa, and the Captain found himself falling directly into Darrius's hand. However, this was not furled into a fist, and rather the teen's wicked claws slashed at the man's face.

Crying in agony as he fell to the ground, bleeding profusely and clutching his face, Carlos was barely capable of raising his cape in time to block a swing of Darrius's tonfa. Sent flying back by the newfound strength of the teen's blows, Carlos leapt to his feet just in time to block another attack. Now thoroughly on the defense, the man barely blocked the oncoming attacks, now hiding behind his shield as opposed to flamboyantly twirling it.

Realizing this, Darrius took a rapid swipe at the side of the man's shin. Shocked by the change in routine, the Captain was struck, and cried out in pain, buckling somewhat. His main advantage, agility, now stripped from him, the captain realized it was time for a last-ditch offensive. And, as Darrius leapt over him, he once again furled up the cape.

"Lanza!" He cried.

"Go Fetch!" Darrius cried, as he hurtled his tonfa at the man.

Spinning rapidly, the item hit Carlos in his already tender face, sending him stumbling back.

"Wolf Claw Mark Two!" Darrius continued, leaping forward from his landing, crossing both arms before cutting outwards in an x-motion, his claws leaving deep gashes in Carlos, seeing him stumble backwards and fall over, finally defeated.

He looked up to see Seth finally dispatching his own opponent. "Heh, five seconds faster!" The teen yelled, bemusedly.

"Not bad at all! You should join my crew!" Seth replied.

"Unfortunately, my dear chap, you seem to have forgotten you both work for me." Reginald explained as he walked in.

"Work is a strong word." Seth shot back.

"Regardless of what you call it, you both work for me now, and unless you're in the mood for a beating, I'd advise you come with me." The captain's voice was icy, and Brutus tensed ever so slightly.

"Well, unless you're in the mood for a beating, I'd advise you release both of us."

"Your arrogance was endearing at first, but now it's simply growing annoying." Reginald replied.

All parties present readied themselves for combat, with the exception of Reginald, who raised his hand to his First Mate. "Stand down Brutus, I'll defeat these two ruffians myself." The behemoth nodded, and the captain's gaze grew icy.

"Very well, if you refuse to show humility I'll beat it into you."

...

 **A/N: And there we go, another chapter done! We leave right on a cliffhanger, because I enjoy teasing you guys, unless you think my fight scenes are garbage, in which case you're welcome. Anyway, tell me what you guys thought of my alternating between fight scenes. Was it too frequent? Did you love it? Hate it? Not care either way? Anyway, until next time, I'm out!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I'm apparently legally obligated to mention that I don't own One Piece...for some reason.**

 **A/N: Here we are again, a much faster update than last time! I told you I wouldn't vanish for months at a time...again. Anyway, regardless of update schedule, I've got a new chapter, fresh of the Fanfiction presses for you guys to sink your teeth into.**

...

Catapulting himself forward, Seth's punch was caught by his new captain, and although Reginald began to spin his hand, the young pirate would not be caught by the same trick twice. Lifting his leg up, teen delivered a powerful kick to the elder fighter's head, causing it to spin uncontrollably.

Despite this, the gentleman was able to toss the teen aside, sending him hurtling off, spinning uncontrollably. Catching his head with a hand, ceasing the momentum, he was just in time to see Darrius charging towards him, tonfa in hand. Sidestepping the swipe, the man grabbed Darrius by the head and spun his body from the hip, sending the teen flying towards his partner.

Just as Seth was getting to his feet, Darrius's body hit him at high speed, sending them both flying away, hurtling uncontrollably towards the wall of the Marine base. "Honestly, I thought you'd had this nonsense beaten out of you."

Grunting as he shoved the human-wolf hybrid off him, Seth rubbed his head before slowly climbing to his feet.

"I'll take the right, you get the left." He commanded.

"Sure thing, sir." Darius replied sarcastically, also climbing to his feet.

With that, both teens charged headlong at their opponent. Darrius leapt at the man, meaning he reach him first. Swinging several times with his tonfa, the gentleman elegantly dodged each of them before delivering a spinning punch to the wolf boy's hybrid. "Drill!" He yelled, Darrius's eyes bulging from his head, and several globs of spittle flying from his mouth before he was sent hurtling away.

Seth had grown airborne, and was now flying towards his opponent, arm trailing behind him. "Meteor!" The teen roared as he prepared a devastating punch.

However, Reginald was well prepared, leg spinning from the knee down, the man leapt up and, as he reached his opponent, titled backwards, before beginning to violently spin his hips, hitting Seth with a jointly spinning attack.

The teen's disorientation would continue as the gent's legs both began to spin at enormous speed, creating small vortexes of air behind him and seeing the man fly through the air. Both forearms spinning at enormous speed, Reginald would loose a volley of punches on Seth, midair. "Vortex Barrage!" He yelled.

Striking at numerous parts of Seth's body, Reginald would fly to wherever he knocked his opponent, creating a relentless barrage. However, after about the fourth consecutive punch, the younger pirate would regain control, somersaulting midair tilting upwards just in time to deliver a devastating uppercut to Reginald's chin. "Ancient Ascension!" The teen roared.

Unable to block, the gentleman was knocked backwards, and sent in an upwards arc through the air. Wings flapping, Seth flew towards him, arm cocked back for a punch. However, the elder fighter had managed to stabilize, lower legs once more creating cyclones and, as Seth delivered his punch, his body would begin to rotate violently. Arm bouncing off, the teen cursed, only to be cut short by Reginald's arm, rotating simultaneously from the forearm and shoulder, striking him on the back of the head.

Arms crossed as he slowly floated up and down, ebbs and flows in his tornadoes making his flight less than stable, Reginald noticed Seth was once again getting up, looking rather nauseated. With this, he began to fly towards the teen, his entire body starting to rotate with such speed that he resembled a human tornado.

"Well, if you want to play it that way..." Seth murmured as he leapt upwards, his own body beginning to rotate at enormous speed and begin to resemble a tornado.

"Vortex Missile!"

"Tailspin!"

The two fighters collided midair, bodies spinning in opposite directions. Gale winds emanated from the two pirates, and a red glow could be seen forming between the two of them. At first, they appeared evenly matched, however, as Seth's rotation began to slow, Reginald's remained constant, and with each passing moment the disparity widened. Eventually, Seth stopped spinning altogether and was hurtled away by his sheer impetus, immensely dizzied by his failed battle.

Reginald continued on, landing on the ground, looking completely unharmed, bar a small dribble of blood running from his mouth. Dusting himself off slightly, Darrius grimaced. "Looks like I'm up."

Running forward, Darrius raised his tonfa in the air as Reginald turned to face him, looking annoyed more than anything by the insubordination. "Go Fetch!" The teen cried as he hurtled his tonfa at the gent, who knocked the spinning instrument away with a spinning hand, a look of disbelief on his face. "Honestly? Is that all you're capable of-"

He was cut short by Darrius raising a fist. However, as he prepared to counter, the teen shrunk down rapidly, transforming into his wolf form. Shocked, the man was bowled off his feet by the still impressive creature. When the teen reached the other side of the man, he returned to his hybrid form, and delivered a punch to the back of the gent's head.

However, this proved a poor attack against the man, whose hands darted out, allowing him to vault over, and land in a standing position, seemingly not affected in the least.

"That was mildly impressive. The two of you are faring much better than previously." Reginald said.

"Uh...thanks?" Darrius asked.

"Relish it, it's the only compliment you'll be receiving."

"The only compliment I need is to kick your as-" He was interrupted by a sudden dust storm, which caused the hybrid to cover his eyes in shock, blinded by the gravel and dirt that was being kicked up. "What's going on?" Darrius murmured through gritted teeth. However, agitation of the eyes would prove to be the least of his worries, as the ground beneath him exploded upwards, sending the teen hurtling into the air in a tornado, spinning wildly, and bringing the dust with him.

Suddenly, the rotation ceased, revealing Reginald, whose legs promptly began to rotate violently, allowing him to fly upwards into the air, with Darrius still soaring uncontrollably. Grabbing the teen, he would begin to spin his outstretched arm from the shoulder, allowing him to throw his opponent down towards the ground.

Seth had flown up, and nimbly dodged his partner with a flap of the wings, before continuing on upwards to his opponent. Reginald, meanwhile, began to fly down to face the teen. With a flap of his wings, Seth tumbled out of the way of the gent, forcing him to slow his advance, and stabilize, needing to kick his legs out to under him, just in time for Seth to deliver a devastating elbow to the man's back. "Pterodactyl Talon!" The teen cried.

Taking it in stride, metaphorically of course, Reginald landed on one knee, head shooting up to see what Seth's next move would be.

The teen had begun to soar down, preparing to initiate the next round, but Reginald's patience was running thin. He wanted to end the match at that moment. Darrius was already out, it was time for this one to join him.

As Seth attempted to deliver a punch to the top of Reginald's head, the gent would nimbly dodge, grabbing the teen by the ankle and beginning to spin his forearm at enormous speed. With the teen now rotating wildly, the elder pirate would begin to slam him on the ground on either side of him, delivering devastating blow after devastating blow to Seth. After a solid minute of this, he ceased the slamming, but maintained the spinning, and began rotating from the shoulders, seeing him spin the teen around for a few moments, the simultaneous change of direction no doubt nauseating him further, before he finally released him. At high speed. Towards the nearest wall.

The impetus he gained was such that he knocked it down, rubble collapsing atop of him. Meanwhile, Brutus looked towards his Captain to see an uncharacteristic expression of rage adjourning his face, heavy breaths also unusual for the man. Clearing his throat, the man dusted himself off and adjusted his tie slightly. "Well, no doubt our newest members require medical attention. Brutus, take them to the infirmary, I'll accompany you."

Nodding, the giant of a man would scoop up both teens, knocking rubble off the top of Seth before retrieving him. And, as they departed, Reginald found himself unable to read the expression on his First Mate's face.

...

"Full house!" A particularly rough looking bloke roared proudly, the impact of him slamming his cards on the table causing it to quake slightly. With a cigar in mouth and scars innumerable adjourning his face, the man looked every inch a pirate.

"Fold." Another, equally rough looking man announced.

"That just leaves you, new guy? What's that hand you've been so confident about?" The victorious pirate questioned.

A grin spread across Cole's face after he finished downing his rum. "Royal Flush." He announced, slamming the cards down on the table.

"What?!" The previously victorious pirate demanded, veins beginning to spread on his forehead. "You must've cheated! I'll take you on, winner keeps all!"

"Sure." Cole replied. "Get in line." With this, he gestured with his thumb to a pile of unconscious bodies behind him, evidently all pirates whom he'd defeated in a game of poker.

"You think that scares me?" The pirate demanded, storming over to Cole, producing a wicked looking knife.

"No, I think this does." Without moving from his chair, the martial artist's fist would shoot out, sending the man hurtling through the bar, breaking a table or two as he flied.

The patrons of those tables had the good sense to lift their drinks up prior to this, and simply continued their conversation, ignoring the now unconscious body between them.

"Yep, definitely like this place."

Cole's laughter could be heard echoing from outside the bar.

...

Darrius woke up feeling violently ill. A splitting headache plagued him, and his body felt somewhat tender from his prior pounding. Blinking a few times to reorient himself, he realized that he was back in the dungeon. "Not this again..." The teen moaned.

"Ah, welcome back to the waking world."

That was Seth, the guy who'd gotten Darrius into the fight.

"You bastard, what the Hell were you thinking? I'll take the right, my ass." The teen groaned.

"I was working out what his weaknesses were, of course." Seth replied.

"Weaknesses?" Darrius asked incredulously.

"Yeah, what's so weird about that?"

"Well, to me he didn't seem like the kind of guy with a lot of weaknesses. Y'know, how he kicked our asses?!" Darrius demanded.

"Don't be ridiculous, that was all part of the plan!" Seth said.

"The plan?"

"Yeah, I hung back while he pulled that dust storm trick, so that I could work out some more of his tricks. You gave me some valuable info." Seth explained.

"Well, thanks for that."

"I should be thanking you."

"Well, whatever, have you worked out this guy's weak spots yet?" Darrius demanded.

"Yeah, isn't it obvious?"

...

Looking significantly less disheveled, Reginald now sat in a lavishly decorated room, but a few of his crew members present. All were gathered around tables, conversing jovially and politely few murmurs being heard. Clearly intended for the upper echelons of the crew, a brilliant view of both the ocean and island beguiled its being on a high floor.

At present, he was sipping tea with Brutus and the man clad in purple, all gathered around a fireplace.

"Sir, I come bearing a message from one of the subordinates." A typically well dressed individual announced, having calmly sauntered up to the commanders.

"Proceed." Reginald replied, lowering his cup onto its plate.

"We believe we've located 'Shockwave Fist' Cole, sir." He explained.

"Excellent, I will tend to this myself."

"However, I also have graver news." The man continued.

"Well, out with it, my good man."

"A ship belonging to the Golem Pirates has been sighted off the island, and is approaching us rapidly."

"Curses. Any indication Wadlow may be onboard?"

"Not as of yet sir. It doesn't appear to be the flagship."

"At any rate...Brutus, you are to go and retrieve 'Shockwave Fist'. Take a battalion of up to ten men, if you wish." The man nodded and rose, impressive stature meaning he all but had to stoop to stand in the room. "Phineas, you are to remain with me. If we are to emerge victorious, we will need you here, particularly if Wadlow or any of his commanders are onboard." Reginald continued, serenely placing his cup on the table before him. "It seems things are moving faster than we anticipated, and he's making a play earlier than anticipated. Regardless, we will survive. Ready everyone, tell them that war has begun."

...

"Well, what do you plan to do with that knowledge?" Darrius asked at the end of Seth's explanation.

"Beat him, of course."

"Uh, in case you haven't noticed, we're a wee bit trapped at the moment."

"Look around, what do you see?"

At that moment, a group of well dressed individuals sprinted past the cell.

"Someone's announced a sale on tacky suits?" Darrius asked.

"Close enough, people are panicking, which means something big is happening."

"Yeah, and?"

"And it means the time for us to make our escape is getting close."

"I'm guessing you've got a plan?"

"I've always got a plan."

...

 **A/N: And there we go. Quite a short chapter, admittedly, but it's setting up for a lot to happen next chapter. No doubt it'll be a big one! Anyway, look forward to the conclusion of the Gentleman Pirates arc next time, in Rise of the Dawn Pirates! Until next time, adios ladies and gents.**


End file.
